IRANIAN-born, naturalized American, Shohreh Aghdashloo is the star, with Jim Caviezel, of the new film about a Moslem woman’s punishment, “The Stoning of Soraya M.” Says this proud American: “They call me Agafafshoo and Oogoofalafshah.” Also passionate about the land of her birth, Shohreh was here from her home in LA for one night. To demonstrate inside the UN courtyard. She came over 9 at night after the protest and was flying home 6 a.m. next morning because she’s on ABC’s new series “FlashForward.”

“I paid my own plane fare to do this. To save money, I’m staying with a friend. I owe my participation in this demonstration to the US-Iranian society who supported me and my work when I came here. This is now my country. My films are not shown in Iran. My father worked in the shah’s government. And coming from such a repressed Muslim society, I, his daughter, am a divorced, remarried actress. It is illegal to see my movie. My wish would be to put it on camels and donkeys and take it to the far away villagers and show it on a sheet they might hold up. Just so they may know there is life for us all outside . . . but smuggling it in would be considered a crime.

“Back there they are inhuman. My 16-year-old niece and a few friends were listening to a Michael Jackson record. She was found out and jailed. Given 60 lashes just for possessing the Michael Jackson record. When I heard, I was on the verge of a nervous breakdown.

“In 2003, my brother was jailed in Tehran for one and a half years just because I was in a demonstration much like the one tonight. He was a doctor who took care of war patients for three years. We thought they’d never touch him. Never do anything to him. Six a.m. the morning after the demonstration I participated in, they invaded his house. He is now out and lives in San Diego.”

Is she not fearful there may again be reprisals against other family members?

“I have nobody else there except my mother who is 82 and won’t leave because, she says, ‘I need to visit your father’s grave.’ She is too old for them to bother with.”

And Shohreh’s hopes for someday?

“We can not win this political struggle. The West can do nothing. If any revolution really gets under way, the military crackdown will be terrible. Iran’s so-called supreme leader is insane. A man of God? Shooting people? Torturing kids? I know one whose leg is shorter by an inch than the other. The supreme leader allowed him to be tortured when he was young. The symbolic Neda died on camera? This is a man of God?

“Our only weapon is the media. Our only weapon is for you to write these things and to hope some day we strip this man of God of his title. Sean Penn is getting involved. He has sent a letter to strike4iran.com.”

DENZEL Washington bowed out of director Tony Scott‘s runaway train saga “Unstoppable.’ But he was obvi ously stoppable because two weeks later he’s back in. Co-star is Chris Pine of “Star Trek” . . . Not in Manhattan’s Triple-A districts, but some city-area storefronts are doing month-to-month rentals . . . The battle flick “300” did $450 mil worldwide and immortalized Gerard Butler. Most of the characters got zapped in the original so, if not a sequel, a prequel’s coming down . . . Hustling this new ABC fall show “FlashForward,” Dominic Monaghan, of “Lost” and “Lord of the Rings,” was wandering around San Diego’s Comic-Con, the annual homage to all things nerd-dom. To avoid the flood of geeks, he donned a mask to navigate the streets . . . Chris Brown finally did something nice for a lady. His stylist, Philly designer Rashida Blalock just turned red-hot because Chris‘ ex-lady Rihanna wore Rashida’s jeans at a show in London.

I’VE reported I’d heard Kerry Kennedy wants to run for lieutenant governor of New York. She now sends me word she’s “not interested” in that. Her quote that she’s sending out to everybody: “My major concern with Albany is getting the Farm Worker Fair Labor Practices Act passed by the Senate and signed by the governor, which will end the Jim Crow legacy, stop slavelike conditions, and assure basic rights to those who provide food to all New Yorkers.” OK by me, but from this rebuttal it sure seems she’s up to her focus in New York State.

THIS guy was complaining that for his birthday he got a sweater. His friend asked, “So why you complaining?” The guy answered: “I wanted a screamer or a moaner.”

SONGWRITER Bonnie Lee Sanders reports on a vacuum sitter. A cus tomer at the East River Café had just bought a vacuum but was weary from the experience and thought she’d catch a quick bite and some music before schlepping the heavy thing home. But where to park it? In between sets, the nice pianist Albert Aprigliano vacuumsat.